Cellulose nanomaterials are isolated from trees, plants, and algae or can be generated by bacteria. Different raw material sources, as well as different production methods, will lead to cellulose nanomaterials with differing morphology and properties, such as length, aspect ratio, branching and crystallinity. With respect to commercialization, two major categories of cellulose nanomaterials have received the greatest interest: cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) and cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs). CNCs and CNFs are obtained from a variety of cellulose sources, such as wood, using various processing methods. For example, CNCs are produced by acid hydrolysis of wood fiber, whereas CNFs are produced using mechanical processes with or without pre-treatment procedures requiring chemicals or biological treatments to produce fibril-like nanoscale materials. The ability to produce such a wide range of cellulose nanomaterials with different morphologies and properties represents a whole variety of potential applications across multiple industries.
However, the production of cellulose nanomaterials is time and energy consuming. The production of native grades usually requires multiple cycles in the fibrillation stage when commercial mill pulp is used. The degree of fibrillation can be affected by the selection of pre-treatments and choice of raw materials. Currently, the most common raw material is wood pulp, which forms a viscous hydrogel after multiple passes in a grinder or high pressure homogenizer. Since the fibrillation time is the most significant cost factor in the production of cellulose nanomaterials, there is a great need to develop processing methods with a reduced number of fibrillation cycles. In addition, there is a need in the art for more biomaterials as potential sources for raw materials in the production of cellulose nanomaterials, which require production processes that are more cost efficient.